A variety of food holders are known for packing and carrying lunches. Such holders include disposable carriers, such as paper bags, plastic bags and cardboard containers, and more permanent carriers, such as containers fabricated of metal and/or semi-rigid plastic. When using such holders to pack a typical lunch, each food product (e.g., sandwich, salad, chips, cookies and fruit) often is individually wrapped, for instance, in paper, foil or cellophane, or is placed into individual containers, such as flexible plastic bags or sealable semi-rigid plastic containers. After use, such individual wrappers or containers are either thrown away or must be cleaned for subsequent re-use.
Oftentimes, it is desirable to pack a beverage container, such as a soda can, plastic bottle or juice box, with the food products. With the lunch holders described above, packing a beverage container can present several problems. For example, if the food products are placed in a wrapper or flexible container, the beverage container may shift during carrying or storage and break, smash or bruise the food products. Or, if the beverage container has been refrigerated or frozen, condensation from the container may result in soggy, inedible food products.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved lunch holder for packing both food products and a beverage container. Such a lunch holder would eliminate the need to pack individual food products into separate containers that would fit into the lunch holder and that then must either be disposed or washed after use. Further, the lunch holder would isolate a beverage container from the food products, thus protecting the food products from damage, such as from smashing, bruising or moisture.